by Franca Storm
But before he could make a move, another gust of ice-cold wind swept through the front yard. They all started in surprise when Michael appeared, flanked by eight vampires.
“Leave,” Luca snarled.
“Kill him, Luca!” Ryan called.
Luca hesitated.
Michael laughed. “That won’t be happening. There’s too much at stake for him to do something so incredibly stupid. Isn’t that right, Luca?”
“What’s he talking about?” Ryan demanded.
“Nothing,” Luca said. His eyes narrowed at Michael.
“Right. Our little secret. Sorry,” Michael said, holding up his hands. “It won’t remain so, if you stand in my way here, Luca.”
“Why do you want her?”
“The princess is the bridge between the light and the dark.”
Luca rolled his eyes. “What?”
Michael laughed. “You are fools. All of you. You focus so much on your history that you’ve missed the signs of what the future holds. You have no idea of her true potential, her true power.”
“I’ve seen her power for myself. She possesses a fraction of White Realm magic. That is all, Michael,” Luca said.
“She is still learning. What you saw is nothing! She is the bridge, you fool. She is destined to unite the White and Dark Realms. Is that what you want? Do you think your father would want that, to share his power with Vazra? With the damned faeries? White witches? Warlocks? Dragons?”
Cora saw Luca’s stunned reaction to Michael’s revelations. Oh no.
“You see? For once, our agendas mesh. This is bigger than the betrothal, Luca.”
“I need to talk to my father first. I will take her with me and bond with her anyway. If my father confirms what you’re saying is true, then I will give her to you.”
“I’m going to need a guarantee on that.”
Luca brought his wrist to his fangs and bit down hard and angrily. Michael did the same. They both approached one another cautiously. They pressed their bloodied wrists together. A flash of red light cut through the night briefly and then they both pulled away.
“I do love a good blood vow. It ensures compliance,” Michael said. He eyed Cora and licked his lips as he said, “Soon, princess.”
And then he was gone in a flash of vampire speed.
“Please tell me that was just a ruse, Luca!” Ryan thundered.
“It was a blood vow, what do you think?”
“You aren’t giving her to that monster! Do you have any idea what he’ll do to her?”
“Yes.”
Cora felt a slice of fear cut through Ryan. His concentration remained focused on Luca, no doubt readying himself for a sneak attack. But, he spoke inside her head, barking orders.
Go back inside the house. Now. They can’t get to you there. They haven’t been invited.
Cora shook her head vehemently against his telepathic commands. She wasn’t one of his wolves.
I’m not leaving you.
Yes, you are. I’ve got this. I need you to call the pack. He discreetly slipped his cell phone into her hand. Go, my love. His gentle endearment cut through her resistance. He needed her to be safe. He was scared for her. She couldn’t argue with that.
She took the phone and sprinted for the house.
***
After making a quick call to Josh, Cora hurried to the window in the front door.
She watched as Ryan shifted, becoming the huge white wolf. Whoa.
He swept his left paw at Luca, connecting with the side of his face, swiping him away like he was nothing.
But then the other four vampires attacked. All at once.
And it was brutal as all hell.
Kicking, punching, shredding, biting.
They were a whirlwind of punishment.
God. She couldn’t stand back and watch the man she loved suffer.
Not happening.
She hauled open the door and ran down the steps, drawing a stake from each of her hip holsters as she went.
She watched Ryan rise up from beneath them with a roar of fury, sending the four of them flying across the yard every which way.
“Holy shit.” She’d never seen any wolf accomplish such a feat.
They recovered quickly, though, coming at him again.
He batted away two of them with his mammoth paws and lunged at another.
As he mauled the life out of that one, the fourth sank his fangs into his shoulder. Ryan yelped and tried to shake him off, but the vamp held on tightly, biting deeper and ripping his flesh apart.
Cora threw a stake. It propelled through the air with lightning speed. She watched as it penetrated the vampire’s heart. Dust, bitch. The white wolf turned, and she was sure she saw surprise flicker in his animal eyes when he saw her standing there.
Keeping her head on the mission, she ran for the other two vampires. She heard the ripping of flesh behind her and a sharp crack. A quick glance over her shoulder confirmed that Ryan had ripped the head off the vampire he’d been mauling. He bounded over to her. He swept his claws at one of the two assailants. As she engaged in hand-to-hand combat with the other, a chill shot through her, as something awful occurred to her.
They hadn’t accounted for Luca.
Where was he?
A horrendous, primal cry pierced through the night.
She thrust her stake into the heart of the vampire in front of her and spun around in terror, having recognized the cry immediately.
Ryan!
When she turned around, it was worse than she could’ve possibly imagined.
Luca stood over Ryan, who lay immobile on his side. A huge tree branch protruded from his back.
“Ryan!”
As she ran towards him, he shifted back. And that was when she saw that Luca had driven the four-foot branch all the way through his body, from his stomach and right out through the other side.
“No!” she screamed.
Luca bared his fangs and lunged at Ryan, obviously seeing his opportunity now that he’d been forced to return to human form, because of his severe wound. Panic gripped her. It had her power rising up within her suddenly. She reacted on instinct and let it go. Silver fire shot from both her palms, at Luca.
He roared in agony and flew back several feet.
She stepped in front of Ryan and held her palms steady, watching as Luca struggled back to his feet.
“You want more, vampire?” she threatened.
He hesitated.
His eyes darted around frantically. He was sensing something.
Moments later, Cora heard the screech of tires coming up the dirt road towards them. It had to be the pack.
“I will take you as my bride, princess,” Luca vowed, before taking off in a sudden burst of speed.
Cora turned away and skidded to her knees beside Ryan. She laid her hand gently on his arm.
“You’re gonna be okay. It’s gonna be okay, baby.”
He smiled at her weakly. “Go. The pack. They’ll… protect you. Forever.”
She shook her head, tears filling her eyes. “No. I’m not leaving you.”
“I need you… safe. Wife.”
“Ry!” Josh bellowed from behind her.
She turned to see the entire pack rushing onto the front lawn. They encircled her and Ryan. Josh broke through and skidded to his knees beside her.
He snapped into action, examining the wound. “Fucking hell.”
His reaction sent a wave of terror through her.
He reached for the branch embedded in Ryan’s flesh and motioned the pack to step back.
“No. You’ll hurt him!” Cora cried.
“He can’t heal with it in.”
Cora felt hands on her shoulders. She looked up to see Roy and Ben smiling reassuringly at her.
“Ready, Ry?” Josh asked.
Ryan barely managed a nod. He was fading fast, much too fast.
Josh ripped the branch free in one sudden motion.
Ryan bellowed i
n agony, writing on the ground wildly.
His claws sprung from his hands and he smashed them into the ground.
Cora bolted forward and laid her hands on him.
Josh joined her again, taking another look at the wound now that the offending object was no longer blocking his view. To her horror, he grimaced, and emotion flickered in his eyes. He looked away, scrubbing his hand over his face to try to hide the tears that she’d seen fill his eyes.
“Josh?” she pressed. “Talk to me. How bad is it?”
“He’s… not healing.”
“Wolves take some time to heal.”
“It should’ve started by now. The wound’s still bleeding.”
Cora followed his gaze and saw that, not only was it continuing to bleed, but Ryan was actually bleeding out. There was so much blood pooled around him. Way too much.
It was then that she realized what she had to do. Judging by Josh’s reaction, it was the only thing to do.
She shook off her jacket and held her wrist out to Josh. “Cut me,” she commanded.
“What?”
“Summon your claws and slash my wrist. Deep. I would do it myself, but I only have a stake. No claws to speak of.”
“Cora, you’re not a vamp, sweetheart.”
“I am more,” she said. “I heal fast. Faster than the undead. Faster than wolves. “
“That’s not—”
“Listen to me!” she hissed. There wasn’t time to argue, but it looked like she’d have to convince him and the pack, if she hoped to do what she planned, what was needed. “Tonight, when Ryan tasted my blood, he told me that it was powerful, that it packed a major punch. If my blood can cause a power rush for a wolf of his astounding calibre, then it’s really fucking powerful, right?”
“It stands to reason, yeah,” Roy spoke from behind her.
“You guys did the ritual tonight? You mated?” Josh asked, surprised.
“Yes. We haven’t been together a day yet, so I’m not going to sit here a watch him die, okay? So, just fucking cut me!”
Josh beamed at her, obviously happy with her speech. “All right. He’s barely conscious. He won’t be with it, which means he won’t be able to pull back on his own. I’ll stop him from bleeding you dry, okay?”
“Don’t stop it until I tell you to.”
“Cora—”
“Please just trust me, Josh.”
“Fine,” he grumbled. He swiped his razor-sharp claws across her wrist, drawing a deep wound. She cringed at the searing pain. “You okay?” he asked, worriedly.
“Yeah.” She cradled Ryan’s head and pressed her wrist to his lips. “Drink, baby,” she urged.
She watched him scent her blood. He looked up at her through glazed eyes and frowned, looking both shocked and anxious at what she was trying to do. He tried to move away, but he was too weak.
Hell, he was fucking dying. And he was trying to refuse her blood, her help? Ridiculous.
“Drink, Ryan. Now. I need you to live. Your pack needs you to,” she pleaded, tightening her hold on him and forcing his mouth more tightly to her wrist.
Several excruciatingly long seconds passed before he finally gave in and she felt his tongue lap at the blood.
“He’s taking it,” she said, looking back at Josh.
He nodded with relief.
“Fuck,” she choked, when Ryan suddenly started to suck hard, really hard, drawing more of her blood into his mouth at a shockingly rapid rate. She gritted her teeth against the awful pain and ignored her instinctive reaction to rip her wrist away. She could feel herself sweating from the effort. “Oh God,” she gulped. “Shit.”
“Cora!” Josh cried, reaching for her. She felt hands on her shoulders, rubbing them gently, taking care of her. Josh and the pack.
Josh took her hand in his. “Use me.”
“I’ll hurt you.”
“I know. It’s okay.”
She smiled and then squeezed his hand against the pain that Ryan was causing her. She tried her best to hold back her full strength, so she didn’t break his hand.
Moments passed and she watched as Ryan’s wound slowly started to close.
“It’s working!” Josh called out, as much to the pack, as to himself.
Cora smiled dazedly. She could feel herself getting weaker by the second, her life slowly draining away. It was an awful feeling, a terrifying feeling. She wavered, but the pack was there to steady her.
“I need to pull him back now,” Josh told her.
“No!” she choked out. “The wound must close completely, or it’s pointless.”
She forced herself to stay awake against the overwhelming light-headedness and the need to sleep that plagued her.
She watched the wound close completely.
And that was when she passed out.
CHAPTER 18
Cora opened her eyes slowly.
Groaning, she tried to sit up, but strong arms held fast around her.
She smelled him before she saw him.
Ryan.
He was holding her tightly against him, his head nuzzled against hers.
“Cora?” he spoke, softly.
“Yeah,” she rasped, her throat dry from sleep.
“You’re awake!” he cried. “How do you feel?”
“Drowsy,” she murmured, leaning back against him tiredly.
She glanced around and realized that she was on his lap on the couch in the living room of the military base. Josh sat in the chair beside them. And the entire pack was gathered around the room, some sitting on the other two couches, some standing. They were all there, staring at her.
“What’s going on?” she asked, confused.
“You passed out. We were worried,” Ryan told her.
“How long?”
“Several hours.”
“And you’ve all just been standing here, waiting for me to wake up?”
Josh rubbed her arm, telling her, “You saved our Alpha, sweetheart. We would have stayed with you for hours more if that’s how long it’d taken for you to wake up. These boys will die for you now. So will I.”
Oh, wow. She smiled shyly. “It was just a bit of blood.”
Ryan laughed and kissed the top of her head. “So modest. It’s unlike you. You must be tired.”
She craned her neck to look up at him, studying him with concern. “You’re okay, though? Completely healed?”
He nodded. “Thanks to you, my love.”
For the first time, Cora saw raw emotion in his eyes. Deep, gut-wrenching sentiment. He looked away quickly to avoid anyone but her from seeing it.
“Don’t ever do that again,” he scolded her. “Ever. Do you understand me?” he spoke in a harsh, commanding tone.
She heard gasps from several members of the pack, no doubt recognizing what had to be the very familiar sign of their Alpha’s temper flaring. She shifted her weight, breaking his hold on her. “You could just say “thank you” instead of being such a heavy-handed asshole.”
He met her gaze, seeming more than a little shocked. He looked out at the pack, at a complete loss for a few moments. She supposed it was because no one dared to talk to him that way. He drew his gaze back to her and a broad grin played on his lips. “Thank you.”
She laughed and lunged at him, pressing her lips to his, taking him in a ravenous kiss. His hands fisted in her hair and he deepened it, moaning into her mouth with pleasure.
The pack howled and hollered around them.
Ryan pulled back, laughing. Then, he scooped her up in his arms. “Excuse me, boys, but I need to take my wife to bed.”
Cora gazed up at him excitedly.
He shook his head at her. “To sleep. Why are you always at your horniest when you’re drunk, or exhausted?” he asked, as he carried her down the corridor to his room.
Moments later, he had her tucked up in bed. He perched on the edge and just looked at her for a long while.
“What?” she asked, her dazed eyes meeting his inte
nse stare.
“Nothing. I’m just keeping an eye on you, my love.”
“I’m fine, baby. Don’t worry.”
“Mmm. Baby. I’m liking that.”
She smiled. “Yeah? Me too.”
All trace of humor left him, and his expression turned deadly serious, as he said, “You saved my life tonight.”
“I had the power. I used it. That’s all.”
“That’s all? You could’ve died, Cora.”
“No, Ryan. I couldn’t.”
“How do you know that?”
“I just know. I can’t explain it.”
He heaved a heavy sigh. “What happened tonight… it should never have happened. I put you in jeopardy.”
“Luca did, not you.”
“I should’ve gone into the house with you. It was the safest option for us both. If I hadn’t engaged Luca, you wouldn’t have left the house to help me and risked your own life to save mine. My emotions got the better of me. That’s not acceptable. Luca was right. I am weak right now.”
Cora shook her head. “Don’t you get it? Your emotions make you strong.”
“No.”
“Luca said that to get under your skin. He doesn’t feel anything. He doesn’t care about anyone. He doesn’t love anything, or anyone. But you do. And that scares him, because of the power that it gives you. The power of conviction. You fight for something real, for those you care about. Nothing can overcome that. Nothing can break your will to win. It makes you unstoppable, Ryan.”
“For all that will you speak of, he beat me tonight.”
“No. You’re still alive.”
“Only because of you.”
“Right. Together, he can’t stop us. Do you see?”
She watched him taking her words in. And then he nodded slowly, “Yeah. I hear you.”
She smiled. “Besides, he won’t be able to almost kill you again now. You have my blood coursing through your veins. A lot of it. No wound can kill you now.”
He chuckled. “We’re assuming that’s true, darlin’. We don’t know for certain. Let’s not test that theory. How did you stop him anyway? The last I saw of him, he was going in for the bite.”
“I kind of… zapped him.”
“Really? And he was wounded?”
